Lycanthropy

by Ravemore

There are some who make the choice to bond themselves inseparably with the spirits of animals through incantations and magic. Sometimes the transformations are physical in all sense of the word, sometimes they are a transformation of spirit. In either case there is a vicious melding of the individual and the beast. They have no sense of good and evil, only that of hunter and prey. Their existence is servant to the waning and waxing of the moon, and they are deadly hunters. They are what we know as were-creatures, or lycanthropes. They are a shadow of the chaotic nature of the Fomori… and by extension the dark side of the Goat God Cernunnos. Man has his dark sides, even as the Gods. Do not shrink from it, and recognize it for its place in the balance.

Innocents can also find themselves unwilling victims of lycanthropy by being bitten by a were-creature, or being born to a were-creature. Cures can be dangerous and unreliable. Once a victim tastes human blood, the process is irreversible. Silver weapons are said to be highly effective against were-creatures. The highly poisonous herb wolfsbane, better known as monkshood, is reputed to repel lycanthropes.

Example of an old ritual:

The ritual site must be remote and free from possibility of interruption and a full moon must be in the sky and visible. The preferable time is in the witching hours, between midnight and dawn. A stream of Lycanthropus water must run through the area where the ritual will be performed. Lycanthropus water differs from ordinary water in subtle details often overlooked, such as possessing a strange faint odor, not identifiable, or having a lurid sparkle strongly suggestive of the water being somehow alive. As the water rushes, it sounds like muttering or whispering human voices rather than the typical sound moving water makes, particularly at night. Dogs and horses are especially fearful of these bodies of water and will try to avoid them.

Select a level piece of ground to perform the ritual on.

Next, mark a circle of not less than 7 ft. in radius.

Within the circle and from the same center mark another circle 3 ft. in radius.

In this inner circle kindle a fire of pine or black poplar. Over the fire place an iron tripod holding an iron vessel of water.

As soon as the water begins to boil throw into it 3 handfuls each of the following substances: Parsley, saffron, aloe, and poppy-seed.

Add 3 cups of a salve base and the hair of a wolf.

After it renders down and cools, strip off your clothes and smear the salve all over your naked body. Kneel at the edge of the Lycanthropus water and incant the following:

Tis night, ’tis night, and the moon shines white

Over pine and snow-capped hill; the shadows stray through burn and brae and dance in the sparkling rill.